Black: 0.001
White: 37.7
Full-On/Full-Off Contrast Ratio: 37,700:1

For the picture settings used in this review, go to www.HomeTheaterMag.com. All the measurements here were taken in the Pure AV Selection (picture setting mode), through an HDMI input, with the set adjusted for the most accurate picture in a darkened room.

The Pioneer’s full-on/full-off contrast ratio speaks for itself. The software needed to use the set’s more precise ISF calibration feature (ISF-CCC, which provides 10 calibration steps in the brightness range instead of the usual two) was not available to us at test time. Even without it, the PRO-111FD calibrated beautifully. Post-calibration, the result deviates from nearly perfect compliance only at the darkest end of the brightness range, below 30 IRE.

The white triangle in the pie-shaped CIE chart shows the set’s color gamut in the Color Space 2 setting (Pure mode). It’s a virtual overlay of the ATSC standard (the black triangle, nearly invisible here).

The Pioneer’s resolution was superb up to the limit of our resolution test patterns in 1080i and 1080p. The 720p resolution was slightly less impressive but still only a step short of excellent. The same held true for 480i/p. Component resolution was a definite step down from HDMI at 1080i but equal to HDMI at 720p and 480i/p. In all cases, the luma (black-and-white) and chroma (color) resolutions extended out to the maximum frequency that are required by HD and SD, respectively. (1080p component resolution was not tested.)

Put simply, I would choose HDMI with this set for the best resolution results at 1080i/p, but either HDMI or component will provide excellent performance at 720p or 480i/p.

The Pioneer’s overscan (in the Dot-by-Dot aspect ratio setting) was zero in 1080i/p. It averaged around 1.5 percent per side (roughly a 6-percent loss of image area overall) in 720p and 3 percent (a 12-percent loss) in 480i/p. (Dot-by-Dot is available only in 1080i/p.)—TJN